In a judgment that could cost the jobs of many college teachers, a Full Bench of the Kerala High Court has held that appointments made to posts of principals and teachers made in universities and various affiliated colleges in contravention of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Regulations after 2010 are illegal.
Overruling a verdict by a Division Bench on the UGC norm implementation, the Full Bench comprising Justice Antony Dominic, Justice A. Hariprasad, and Justice P.B. Sureshkumar observed on Tuesday that in view of the adoption of the UGC Regulations-2010 by the State government with effect from September 18, 2010, the Universities and affiliated colleges in the State “are bound to comply with the UGC Regulations 2010”, irrespective of whether the University Acts or the statutes framed thereunder “are amended in line with the UGC regulations or not”.
The Bench further made it clear that the selections made after the Government Order dated December 10, 2010 could only be “in compliance with the said Regulations”.
The fact that the university statutes had not been amended was “inconsequential”.
The court made the ruling while deciding a batch of writ petitions challenging appointments of principals and promotions of teachers under various colleges affiliated to the University of Kerala and Mahatma Gandhi University.
The writ petitions were referred to the Full Bench as a single judge expressed his doubt whether the ruling given in the Ravindran case could be sustained in view of various Supreme Court judgments upholding the UGC regulations.
In the S.N. College Vs. N. Ravindran case, a Division Bench had held that as necessary amendments were not brought to the University statutes, the management of affiliated colleges were not bound to follow the regulations.
Amendments
The Division Bench had also added that it was for the State government and university authorities to take steps to carry out necessary amendments in the University Act and Statutes and issue orders accordingly.
Selection grade lecturers
The petitions which had come up before the Full Bench, the petitioners had contended that only those selection grade lectures who had Ph.D. qualifications as mandated by the UG Regulations could be appointed as principals. Some other petitions challenged the university action in not awarding marks indicted in the Academic performance Indicator in terms UGC regulations during promotions. The universities and the college authorities argued that the UGC Regulations did not have any relevance as long as appointments were made in terms of the University statutes.
